Another close associate of President Muhammadu Buhari, Ismaila Isah Funtua died on Monday, July 20 in Abuja. Funtua, a former Minister in Nigeria’s ill fated second republic (1979-1983), reportedly died suddenly. Funtua, aged 77, is said to have been one of the key allies of President Buhari, constituting the cabal said to be providing advice and guidance to Buhari’s rule. Since 2015 when President Buhari won the presidential election after about 12 years of running for the office, concerns have continued to mount over the parochial and ethnocentric nature of his rule. He is accused of lop-sidedness in his appointment to federal offices, favouring mostly persons of his ethnic and religious stock and disregarding the principles of federalism and national diversity entrenched in the Constitution.
Owing to the small clan of his mostly advanced, aged advisers, Nigerians have constantly accused President Buhari of insensitivity to national differences; and by his actions, inactions and rule, promoting divisiveness in the country, in ways never before seen. It will be recalled that in April 2020, Buhari’s Chief of Staff, Abba Kyari died of Coronavirus related causes. Kyari, a key member of the Buhari cabal, was reputed to be a gatekeeper of the Buhari Presidency. He also played a key role in formulating and pursuing several of Buhari’s policies that hinged on some of the divisiveness that Nigerians have raised concern about in political stability and development.